Colonies Dbq

A.P. U.S. DBQ:

Question: Although New England and the Chesapeake region were both settled largely by people of English origin, by 1700 the regions had evolved into two distinct societies. Why did this difference in development occur?

By the 1700s the two regions, New England and Chesapeake varied greatly in spite of being from the same mother country, England. Physical and cultural differences separated these two regions distinctively. While religion moulded the daily life in New England, Money and tobacco farming dominated the Chesapeake.

Puritans fleeing religious persecution in England settled New England. They were a highly religious people. Document A, John Winthrop’s “ City on a hill” speech, shows how they lived according to God’s will and were very community oriented. Their towns were very planned out with a town/ church meetinghouse in the centre, and land plots for everyone in the community. This is shown in Document D, Articles of Agreement in Springfield Massachusetts 1636. Family was also very important. Since they were very religious and family is highly regarded in the Bible, marriage was advocated and adultery was a huge crime. Adulterers were made to wear the letter A on their clothing. Since they were a very close-knit people, they travelled as big families and sometimes as communities. This mass travel is depicted in document B that is a ship’s list of emigrants bound for New England. Puritans also placed a high value on education. Education was thought to oppose Satan. The government in Puritan towns in New England was more a theocracy than a democracy. Religious uniformity was very important as they were intolerant of any other religion, and only church members were part of the government at first. Citizens were required to attend Church services as part of the law. Most of the people in New England had been merchants or small farmers in England. In New England however, the rocky soil made it hard for a lot of farming, so the Puritans turned to the coast. They built up major industries such as shipbuilding and fishing, and established trade routes with England, and the Caribbean. The New Englanders were a very pious and hardworking people, very different from their southern neighbours.

The Chesapeake region was the first region to be colonized. The first settlers had a very hard time adapting to the moist swampy climate and lack of commerce and civility that they were used to in England. Most of the early settlers were gentlemen sent by companies such as the Virginia and London Companies. They were determined to find wealth in the North American wilderness, and suffered greatly due to famine and diseases like malaria. Most of these unlucky settlers were men, which was a drawback for the new colony of Virginia because there was very little reproduction. Document C, a ships list of emigrants bound for Virginia